After a disjointed warm up due to the late arrival of a number of Farnham players, Camberley began the game strongly, only to be denied following some excellent defence. Gradually Farnham fought their way into the game, and when debutant Mike Fluey charged down an attempted clearance and then picked up the loose ball to score in the corner, Farnham were on their way despite a missed conversion attempt. Unbelievably Farnham managed to botch a number of guilt edged scoring chances when they had massive numerical advantage over their opponents, but fortunately this did not prove decisive at the end of the game.
Camberley came back into the game with a try of their own after Farnham coughed up ball from a lineout steal, and a missed tackle in the centres saw Farnham fall further behind. However, a strong (and surprisingly quick!) break from scrum half Gareth Evans saw Farnham back into the game, and even when flanker Dan Heap was sin-binned shortly afterwards, Farnham weathered a period under the cosh, and responded in spectacular style with a try that must be considered for try of the season.
A Farnham penalty inside their own 22 was quickly tapped to Lee Manson who passed on to a rampaging Rich Doran who carried the ball well into the opposition half before off loading to a scampering Nigel Rooney. With his little legs working like pistons, Rooney flashed towards the line, and as the cover defence converged he flicked a pass inside for Jonny Andrews to score the try to give Farnham a well deserved 15-14 half time lead.
The second half began terribly for Farnham with Camberley scoring an unconverted try straight from the kick off. A Rooney penalty eased the tension for Farnham, and a triple substitution proved crucial as Farnham weathered a Camberley assault on their line, resulting in a penalty awarded to Farnham and a Camberley player sent to the bin for foul play. Some excellent defence from Angus Harrisson, one of Farnham’s most improved players, ensured that soon after Lee Manson scored a team try, and as Farnham cranked up the pressure James Worlidge scored a converted try. Rooney converted and added a penalty before Camberley scored a consolation try with time up.
The final score of 33-24 was the least that Farnham deserved for an impressive if slightly erratic display. James Franklin was Farnham’s man of the match with a good display in the loose and a number of important lineout steals. However the coaching team were most pleased with the number of players who put their hands up for 1st team selection next week.
